Broadcasting
NCC, Nigeria Customs to Strengthen Border Controls Against Copyright Piracy
In a renewed measure to encourage creativity and boost Nigeria’s creative economy, the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) and the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) have agreed to strengthen collaboration between the two agencies and develop new anti-piracy strategies.
This agreement was reached during a courtesy visit by the Director-General, NCC Dr. John O. Asein to the Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC), Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, MFR at the NCS Headquarters, November 21, 2023.
The heads of both agencies acknowledged the strategic importance of Intellectual Property, particularly Copyright, to the growth of the country and noted the devastation caused by the activities of copyright pirates in the sector.
They therefore expressed their commitment to introduce ICT driven proactive measures and enhance their operations through training and intelligence sharing as envisaged in the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to check copyright piracy and other illicit activities in the copyright sector.
Dr. Asein, expressed optimism that the provision of section 168 of the Nigeria Customs Act which specifically grants the Service powers to detain, arrest and seize any material that infringes the Copyright Act will complement the criminal provisions of the new Copyright Act to strengthen border policing and the anti-piracy efforts of the two agencies.
While appreciating the CGC and the management of NCS for helping the Commission to deliver on its mandate in the fight against piracy, Dr. Asein announced that the Commission would introduce a pre-import notification system to facilitate the clearance of genuine imports of copyright materials and make the detection of illicit imports easier.
He also confirmed that the Commission was working with book publishers to introduce antipiracy stamps for use on books to discourage pirates.
Explaining that importers of copyright works are also smugglers, the Director-General assured the CGC that the Commission will identify with the renewed war against all forms of smuggling and rid Nigerian ports of pirated materials.
He therefore warned Nigerians who collude with foreigners to import pirated books to desist and patronize legitimate channels for their imports.
In his response, the CGC commended the DG and the entire staff of NCC for their proactive and sustained drive in rebuilding the nation’s copyright system to benefit its creatives.
He therefore urged stakeholders to come together to promote and protect the copyright system. “Here at Nigeria Customs Service, we will do the best we can to ensure that this sector gets the desired attention” the CGC assured.
He noted that there is need for more awareness creation, capacity building on copyright matters and joint training programmes for entry and exit point officers, as pirates are devising all manners of tricks to outsmart officers. To this end, both agencies immediately identified the low hanging fruits and agreed on the first round of training and activities to be held before the end of the year.
The Management teams from both NCC and NCS were also at the courtesy meeting.
Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) has announced the postponement of its maiden annual Public Relations, Reputation, Ideas, Concepts and Excellence (PRICE) Awards and Prizes to January 25, 2026.
NIPR
The event, earlier scheduled for December 7, 2025, was deferred to accommodate stakeholders whose observance of Christmas festivities had commenced earlier than expected.
Chairman of the Organising Committee, Mr. Israel Opayemi, urged stakeholders to note the new date and prepare to participate in the ceremony.
He said the awards would motivate professionals, practitioners and scholars, while enhancing Nigeria’s global competitiveness in the public relations ecosystem and strengthening brand equity for all stakeholders.
Opayemi reaffirmed the Committee’s commitment to delivering a best-in-class award administration and ceremony, describing the PRICE Awards as a credible and enduring platform to identify, celebrate and elevate outstanding individuals, campaigns and organisations shaping the public relations landscape across sectors.
The development of the PRICE Awards peaked in September 2025 when the NIPR President and Chairman, Council, Dr. Ike Neliaku, inaugurated a 12-man committee to organise the maiden edition. The inauguration followed the Council’s adoption of the report of a technical team tasked with establishing the awards.
Netflix has announced a landmark agreement to acquire Warner Bros. and HBO Max in a transaction valued at $82.7 billion, a move analysts say will reshape the global entertainment industry.
Netflix
The deal, which includes Warner Bros.’ film and television studios, HBO, HBO Max, and Warner Bros. Games, was unanimously approved by the boards of both companies. Under the terms, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) shareholders will receive $23.25 in cash and $4.50 in Netflix shares for each WBD share.
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos described the acquisition as “a defining moment” for the streaming giant, noting that the company intends to maintain Warner Bros.’ current operations while expanding its production capacity.
“By combining Warner Bros.’ incredible library of shows and movies with Netflix’s culture-defining titles, we can give audiences more of what they love and help define the next century of storytelling,” Sarandos said.
The transaction is expected to close within 12 to 18 months, following the planned spin-off of WBD’s TV networks division, Discovery Global, in 2026. Netflix projects annual cost savings of $2–3 billion by the third year after completion and expects the deal to be accretive to earnings per share by year two.
Industry groups, including the Directors Guild of America and Cinema United, have raised concerns about the impact on movie theaters, while regulators are expected to scrutinize the deal over antitrust issues. Netflix has pledged to continue supporting theatrical releases, with Warner Bros.’ cinema commitments running through 2029.
Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav hailed the agreement, saying it “combines two of the greatest storytelling companies in the world to bring to even more people the entertainment they love.”
Observers note that the acquisition comes 15 years after former Time Warner chief Jeff Bewkes dismissed Netflix as “the Albanian army,” underscoring the dramatic shift in the entertainment landscape.
A major shake‑up rocks viewers and subscribers of DSTV/GOTV as many channels are set to shut down and be removed on January 1, 2026.
The trigger for the upcoming shut‑down is a breakdown in negotiations between the owners of multiple global channels and the pay‑TV operator.
As of December 2025, the deal between Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) and DStv/GOtv has expired and the two parties have not reached a renewal agreement.
Without a new carriage/distribution agreement, the channels belonging to WBD risk being pulled off the DStv/GOtv line‑up.
This is the most significant content cutback the service has seen in years.
The affected channels are:
Discovery Channel
TLC
Cartoonito
Cartoon Network
CNN International
Food Network
The Travel Channel
TNT
Investigation Discovery
Real Time
HGTV
Discovery Family
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